Archaeologists Elizabeth Macaulay-Lewis, Mohamed Kenawi, and their colleagues on the Upper Egypt Mosque Project examined several major temples where churches and mosques were built around and sometimes inside their enclosures. One of the most interesting examples is at the Mosque of Abu al-Hajjaj in modern-day Luxor, which was built over the remains of a Coptic church. Excavations in the early 19th century revealed that underneath these foundations stood the Temple of Luxor, once a pre-eminent temple of Ancient Egypt. The site has been the home of a religious building continuously since Pharaonic times, and observations of modern Islamic traditions in the area suggest that more than just architecture was transmitted through the centuries. In Pharaonic Egypt, figures of the gods were carried in barques between the temples at Luxor and Karnak during the yearly Opet festival. Boats are still carried through the streets today, during the mulid celebration in honor of Abu al-Hajjaj.

Fun fact: In ancient Egypt, barques (a type of boat with three masts, commonly featured in Egyptian artwork) were important religious artifacts, the chosen vehicle of the gods. It’s not surprising that they featured so prominently in Egyptian culture, since the Nile was the center and source of all life.

Session 2G: Recent Work in Egypt, will deliver the preliminary results of this project, which suggest a complex pattern of reusing sacred spaces and repurposing religious rituals and practices. The Panel will be held on Friday, January 4, 12:30-2:30 p.m. To hear more about Professor Macaulay-Lewis’s work, listen to her recent podcasts, where she speaks more about Two Royal Figures in the Saljuk Period and Ilkhanid Mihrab. Dr. Kenawi is the co-director of the Kom al-Ahmer/Kom Wasit Archaeological Project. To learn more about this archaeological excavation in Egypt, visit the excavation's website.

2017 AM Resources

Annual Meeting Hotels

WARNING!

NOTICE: AIA and SCS members have received telephone calls and e-mails from individuals representing companies offering to make hotel reservations for attendees. These individuals are operating without the consent of either Society and are fraudulently representing themselves as AIA/SCS, the Sheraton Centre Hotel, the Hilton Hotel, or a housing service hired to process reservations for the joint annual meeting. They are not authorized in any way by the Societies to handle annual meeting hotel reservations and have no special access to our discounted group block.

No one at AIA, SCS, or the Sheraton or Hilton will ever call you via telephone asking you to book a hotel room, and you will not receive a solicitation via email from any of our affiliated hotels. The only official hotels for the 2017 conference are the Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel (123 Queen St W, Toronto, ON M5H 2M9, Canada) and Hilton Toronto (145 Richmond St W, Toronto, ON M5H 2L2, Canada). Our discounted rate at both properties is $159 CAD. Any offers from other hotels and/or travel agencies are not endorsed by AIA or SCS. We strongly urge attendees to use and book through the official housing web link on the AIA and SCS (https://classicalstudies.org) web sites. The Societies would like to hear from any member who has been approached in this way. Please write to AIA at 2017annualmeeting@aia.bu.edu.

Why is it important to book at our official Annual Meeting Hotels?
The AIA and SCS are proud to have produced the Annual Meeting for our professional members for the past 117 years. Financially, we are able to do this by reserving a large block of rooms with a hotel. In exchange, these hotels offer our attendees the guaranteed lowest group rate at the hotel and provide us with complimentary meeting space to hold the meeting. But if we are unable to meet our guaranteed minimum number of registered guests, then the AIA and SCS will have to pay for the unused rooms as well as room rental for the meeting space, which can amount to a severe financial penalty. We request your support by booking within our reserved blocks and helping us continue to produce this meeting for the next 100 years. We thank you for your support.